The boys of summer

What a difference a year makes!
We paid our annual summer visit to Busch Gardens, and we had the best time! No whining about the walking, no complaining about the heat--from anyone in our party.

With two boys walking on their own power (Jason and Michael) and one stroller holding just one boy (Joshua), we really felt quite free.

Once #3 is potty-trained, we won't know what to do with all that free space in back of our stroller.

Here's Joshua's attempt at doing bumper cars.



Maybe by next year, he'll enjoy it a little more. He really did enjoy everything else. The Whirly-worm, the rides that put him in a moving swing, the attractions that kept him focused on Elmo. He did plenty of smiling as we picked him up to move him from place to place.



For the first time this year, Jason and Michael, and of course, Doug, rode the big-boy rollercoasters. All of them. And I think our older two might have an appetite for the excitement of these twisty and turn-filled rides. Poor Doug.




Our summer hasn't all been about thrill-rides.
The boys really enjoyed the cooking camp at the Y this past week.

One of the things they learned how to make: dessert.




Mercifully, it tastes better than it sounds.




I've tried to keep the troops busy this summer, but there has been opportunity for some down time.

We've spent some minutes on the computer.

Jason has really shown an interest in money lately and recently, he asked for an allowance. We were hoping, of course, he would never show any interest. I guess he heard kids at camp talking about this whole allowance thing. We are giving him $5 a week, and we have told him he must place the money each week in each of four categories: spend, save, invest and donate.

He's a little impatient, because, of course, he wants to buy what he wants to buy NOW (Bakugan, anyone?) But, he's learning to research prices on the internet and he knows the exact place he'll go to buy his toy once he gets enough money.

Jason's brothers don't have a care in the world. Money does not interest them in the least.



In fact, I think we robbed these folks fishing of their peace and quiet when we took the boys to a new park the other day. Oops. We left a few minutes later.



The summer hasn't been just fun for the kids. We've managed to enjoy ourselves as well. I just went to my 20th high school reunion. Yikes! It was good to catch up and take that walk down memory lane. The best part was coming home and seeing how far we have come.

Cheers, everyone!
We love you lots!!!

Home sweet home

As you hit the road to go away, you always wonder what you left behind.

We realized immediately what we left behind the minute we unlocked the door to our home and walked inside.

Our trash, inside the kitchen. Did I mention we had fish for dinner the evening before we left?

We don't know if that has anything to do with the ants now staking a claim inside our home, but, well, there they are.
For some reason, the arrival of these pesky, tiny, numerous creatures into our humble abode has energized our kids like I've never seen.




I've been looking online for ways to "naturally" get rid of the ants. Talcum powder, pepper, vinegar--we are trying them all. We're cleaning like fiends, too.
Today, Jason and Michael were practically fighting to be able to Swiffer our living room and vacuum our rugs. I'm trying to be supportive, so I let them.

Tonight, we realized the boys must have left some standing water in some bath toys, because we found a family of mosquitoes in the bathtub. It seemed to be the last straw for Jason, who walked around, saying, "What has happened to our house?"



I am confident we will end up victorious against the ants.
But it looks like Michael and Joshua aren't so sure. They may be trying to find a way to send themselves back to Grandma's house!!!

A visit to remember

We have just returned from a wonderful trip to see Grandma and Grandpa. Despite a couple of instances of hearing loss from a screaming Joshua during our travels, we survived the trip there and the trip home.

It was a wonderful opportunity to reconnect with cousins Ezekiel and Elijah, Aunt Stacie, Uncle Dave and Aunt Jeanne.

One day, Jason, Michael and Elijah scaled Stone Mountain.



We were following very far behind. After all, carrying 30 pounds of Joshua up the hill takes some time and effort. Thanks, Doug.

Speaking of Joshua, he had a good time during this visit as well. We stopped by a little children's interactive play center.

They had a little "grocery" store and Joshua was busy filling his basket with "onions," "cookies" and "milk." At least he remembered his calcium.



If he had any questions at all about calcium, he could have found answers from the source itself. They had a little milking station and Joshua got some hands-on learning. It is safe to say he had no clue what was going on. But this picture tells a thousand words, doesn't it?




After we pried Joshua away from Bessie, we found the music room. It was an experience the boys even talk about today. I do believe the boys, each in his own way, is getting some love of music from Doug. Jason is taking piano lessons and really enjoys them. Michael sings. Joshua does, too. We have no idea what he is trying to convey, but he does it with gusto.



I would describe the boys' approach to having fun at Grandma and Grandpa's house the same way. With gusto. They found every toy, put together every puzzle, rearranged every pillow to make their grandparents' house their own.



Jason and Michael pulled out all of Grandma's cushions to build a fort they hid inside. It was so cute. And time-consuming.



Joshua simply enjoyed having good meals.
We love you, Grandma and Grandpa, and we so loved seeing all of you this summer!